Hiram council confirms slate of municipal appointments, authorizes banking signatory and renews civility designation

The Hiram City Council approved a series of appointments and administrative resolutions at its first meeting of 2025, including the appointment of Doris Devery as mayor pro tem and adoption of ordinance 2025-1 appointing a municipal court judge.

The actions formalize staffing for the municipal court and legal functions and delegate banking authority to the newly appointed mayor pro tem. Council members also renewed the city’s “City of Civility” designation.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of minutes from the Dec. 3, 2024 regular session — motion passed. - Appointment of mayor pro tem — initial motion to appoint Derek Battle was declined by the proposed appointee; the council subsequently appointed Doris Devery as mayor pro tem — motion passed; oath administered. - Ordinance 2025-1: appointing Chadwick Plumlee as municipal court judge, establishing pay and term — adopted. - Resolution 2025-01: appointing David Mecklen Jr. and Tim McCreery as standby judges for Hiram Municipal Court — adopted. - Appointment of prosecuting attorney Victoria Aronnell for Jan. 7, 2025–Jan. 7, 2026 at $400 per court session — adopted. - Appointment of indigent defense attorney Linda Caldwell for Jan. 7, 2025–Jan. 7, 2026 at $200 per court session — adopted (appointee not present). - Appointment of Jason (J.J.) Phillips as city attorney — adopted. - Authorization for Mayor Pro Tem Doris Devery to sign banking materials — adopted. - Resolution 2025-02: authorize Mayor Pro Tem to sign paperwork for the Georgia Fund 1 General Fund account — adopted. - Resolution 2025-03: authorize Mayor Pro Tem to sign paperwork for the Georgia Fund 1 Water Fund account — adopted. - Resolution 2025-04: city of civility designation renewal — adopted.

Council members presented and administered oaths of office for several appointees after votes. The meeting record shows multiple motions made and seconded and routine "all in favor" confirmations; no roll-call vote tallies with member-by-member votes were recorded in the transcript.

Council discussion and procedure notes

- A motion to appoint Derek Battle as mayor pro tem was made and the proposed appointee declined, stating he did not have time to serve. Councilmember Doris Devery’s subsequent appointment drew a motion to withdraw the earlier nomination and passed; Devery took the oath of office. - Ordinance 2025-1 was offered to appoint Chadwick Plumlee as municipal court judge and to establish pay and term; the council adopted the ordinance after a motion and second. - The council adopted resolutions appointing standby judges and named compensation and term limits for the prosecuting and indigent defense attorneys; the transcript records the compensation amounts and the one-year term for those attorney appointments. - Banking and fund-signatory resolutions (Resolutions 2025-02 and 2025-03) explicitly authorize Mayor Pro Tem Doris Devery to sign the city’s Georgia Fund 1 General Fund and Water Fund paperwork. - The council adopted Resolution 2025-04 renewing the city’s City of Civility designation.

Formal actions recorded in the meeting packet and minutes — including ordinance and resolution numbers and attorney compensation amounts — will govern implementation and payroll; the transcript does not show subsequent implementation steps or reporting deadlines.

Ending

Several appointees present during the meeting took their oaths of office at the dais. The council moved on after the oath presentations to ceremonial and visitor-business items.